GALEYKA. 19 



gence, glad enough to find that our pursuit had no 

 further object ; as it seemed that he had mistaken us 

 for part of a Commando in quest of cattle stolen from 

 the colonists. 



A little before sunset we reached the kraal of 

 Galeyka, an old chief, who pressed us to remain 

 with him during the night, in expectation, no doubt, 

 of receiving a handsome barsaala ; but from our ex- 

 perience of the previous evening, we preferred breath- 

 ing the pure air of heaven under a star -lit canopy^ 

 to the chance of being stifled within a miserable 

 hovel. He then stated that it would be unsafe for 

 us to proceed, as the country was infested with ele- 

 phants ; and if we should fall in with any of them, 

 our escape might not be so fortunate as his own had 

 been in a recent encounter. We nevertheless de- 

 clined his solicitations, and after partaking of a little 

 milk, in return for which we made him a present of 

 a few beads, as usual, we pursued our route ; when 

 Thackwray, who had been previously acquainted 

 with Galeyka, gave me the following particulars of 

 the Chief's adventure with the elephant, to which 

 he had alluded : — " Having come unexpectedly in 

 contact with one of these wild and formidable ani- 

 mals, he wounded it with his assagai; when the 

 infuriated beast rushed quickly towards him, and 

 Galeyka, with a daring peculiar to men in the 

 habit of encountering these prodigious creatures> 

 dashed suddenly, as a last resource, under its belly. 



c 2 



